SME telecoms complaints increase

When comparing phone plans, there can be many factors that need consideration.

Price, bandwidth, coverage and other services can all affect how you choose your provider and which plan you think will work best for you or your company.

Customer service can also be an issue - the speed and alacrity with which a company deals with problems and complaints can also have a bearing on brand loyalty.

The Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman (TIO) has released figures from the 2010-11 period showing an increase of 52 per cent in small business complaints about their telecoms providers - and that most of these problems arose from poor customer service advice and broken promises.

However, the number of investigations reduced by 73 per cent - due to the willingness of many providers to follow TIO's conciliation process.

While the total number of complaints diminished in the last quarter of the period, the beginning of 2011 saw TIO dealing with record levels of complaints.

Ombudsman Simon Cohen said: "The increase in credit management issues for mobile services during this period, and the financial over-commitment that is a substantial cause of these complaints, is of particular concern."